Will Smith presented McQueen’s film, which was also produced by Brad Pitt, with the Best Picture Oscar. Pitt accepted the award before giving way to McQueen, a fellow producer. The 44-year-old made Oscars history by becoming the first black man to win an Oscar in the Best Picture category. (He lost Best Director, however, to Alfonso Cuaron for “Gravity.”) McQueen thanked his mother, his children and Pitt. “Everyone deserves not just to survive, but to live. This is the legacy of Solomon Northup,” McQueen said. He dedicated the Oscar to the people who spent their lives suffering in slavery. (. . .)

“12 Years a Slave” had previously won top film honors at the Golden Globes and BAFTA Awards, and it tied with “Gravity” at the Producers Guild Awards, a frequently reliable predictor for Best Picture. (. . .)